Once in a decade voice: KHS senior first selected for All-State Choir in 10 years

Saturday

Feb 16, 2013 at 9:00 AM

Kirksville’s Pennington first from KHS since 2002 to be named all-state choir

Taylor Muller/@TaylorMullerKDE

Gathered in Columbia in November, Kirksville High School choir members were anticipating the announcement of the year’s All-State Choir selections.

For the past decade, year after year, Kirksville and its hardworking singers had been skipped over for the state’s elite choir.

But not this year.

Kirksville High School’s Caitlin Pennington broke the streak and became the first choir member in a decade to grace the state’s about 200-strong choir group for the three days of breakneck rehearsals and culminating concert at the Lake of the Ozarks in late January.

One of four sopranos from the Northeast Missouri district, Pennington represented Kirksville during the four days of rehearsals starting after breakfast and many days leading past dinner.

The pace was grueling and the music challenging, but the experience was “absolutely amazing,” Pennington said earlier this week.

“It was an honor to rehearse and perform with such talented students,” she told the Kirksville R-III School Board during its “Good Things” report Wednesday. “It was absolutely amazing. I’ve never sang with a choir of that caliber and honestly may never again.”

Pennington started her path toward a career in music after watching her mother play organ at church on the weekends in Kirksville. Her repertoire includes the guitar, percussion instruments and dance and she’s interested in pursuing music as a career, but not in a traditional sense.

“Going to All-State really solidified the fact I know I want to be a music therapist,” Pennington said. “I’m sure I want to work in some type of music field because of my life and the experiences I’ve had, I want to be able to share that with others.”

Those experiences include walking onto the state stage as Kirksville’s only choir representative, performing in the high school’s many musicals and being surrounded by the intense dedication of her fellow choir members at the state level.

“It made me proud to be part of Kirksville and show we do have a really good choir program even though we haven’t had anyone to represent us in the past 10 years,” Pennington said.

Kirksville High Choir Director Rebecca Murphy praised Pennington for her technical abilities and drive. She said after so many years of being passed over, “it was nice to hear our name called.”

“She was really repping the entire high school in the choir the whole time,” Murphy said.

And being the sole Kirksville Tiger to roam the rehearsal halls, Pennington said she felt honored to simply be there much less to perform with her peers.

“The caliber of the choir was so much higher than any I’ve ever performed with,” she said. “It will stick with me. The fact that such a wonderful sound, such an experience can be had, it will stay with me the rest of my life.”

Pennington told the School Board she is preparing for a music audition for Western Illinois University on Monday. She’s attending the university on a music scholarship next fall and will be pursuing a double major in music education and music therapy.

And as the resident expert on what it takes to make it to the state level, Pennington advised prospective members focus on their sight reading and continue to audition and strive for the top honor.

“Definitely try it,” she said, as advice. “Don’t hold anything back and if they can work on sight reading, put in the effort to practice. They can definitely make it and have this amazing experience.”